Wheat war on the Moroccan market
The Moroccan market attracts the attention of the world’s leading wheat producers and exporters. Once the preserve of France, Morocco now represents an excellent market, with all the world’s exporters jostling for position. They compete fiercely for the largest share of the market. Russia’s tempting offer is a further step in this quest.
“Russia is ready to supply wheat to Morocco at a reasonable price”, said Russia’s Ambassador to Morocco, Vladimir Baibakov, in a recent interview with the TASS news agency. The ambassador added, saying “Morocco remains one of Russia’s main commercial and economic partners in Africa. In a geopolitical context marked by the exacerbation of the energy and food crises, such a partnership is particularly important”. The land of the tsars is a major rival for France. France risks losing market share in Morocco and suffering a diplomatic backlash.
Diplomatic stakes and low prices are the winning cards, according to Arthur Portier, senior consultant at Agritel, a firm specializing in agricultural and agri-food issues, who recently spoke to the French media. Indeed, the price battle is intensifying on traditional markets that used to be France’s export preserve, notably Morocco, putting French supply to the test.
«Morocco used to grant subsidies to importers who bought French wheat. Now all countries are on an equal footing», explains Arthur Portier.
France aspires to win back its market share so as not to fall further behind its competitors. However, the task looks very difficult. This is due to Russia’s advantageous price offer, which France is unable to match. The Kingdom has also reviewed its system of soft wheat import refunds. The flat-rate premium now benefits imports from Russia, Ukraine, Germany, Argentina, France, and the United States. This further reduces Morocco’s reliance on France.
The threat also comes from Poland. This Eastern European country is eyeing Moroccan importers. Within the EU, Poland is the 4th largest producer after France, Germany, and the UK. In 2022, Morocco’s agri-food imports totaled 111 million euros. Wheat naturally accounts for the lion’s share, with 57% of imports. Poland wants to increase its market share. To this end, an imminent meeting is looming ahead: «After the harvest, the producers will return to Morocco shortly, to meet Moroccan operators once again. We have great hopes in this area to strengthen our economic relations in this sector», said the Ambassador.
Khadija SKALLI
